Requiem (Hokehankisd) Service

It is a tradition in the Armenian Church for families to request Requiem Service on the fortieth day and on subsequent anniversaries of the death of their loved ones. The celebrant mentions the names of the deceased during the prayers of the Divine Liturgy and a prayer service is conducted immediately following the Divine Liturgy.

According to the teachings of the Armenian Church, those who have died enter into a period of rest while awaiting our Lord’s glorious second coming at the end of time. But while separated from the Christian community, the souls that are resting continue to be counted among the faithful, who “rest in the shadow of the church.” We therefore pray for them, as we pray for all our earthly cares. Essentially, our prayer for the dead is that they rest in peace, that the Lord forgive them all of their sins and find them worthy of eternal life in the Father’s kingdom when Christ comes again.

Praying for the dead is a proclamation of our faith in Christ’s second coming, and our hope in the resurrection of the dead. When the Armenian Church prays regularly for the dead we are reminded that life is transient, and we are filled with hope because we believe that death is too.

Source: The Divine Liturgy of the Armenian Church – St Vartan Press